Sonar Music Festival To Land In Chicago

By Jake Guidry in Arts & Entertainment on Jun 17, 2010 7:40PM

Chalk up another great music festival to embrace Chicago this summer. The Barcelona-based Sonar - a high-profile electronic music festival since 1994 - will branch out to The Windy City September 9-11, just a week after a similar North Coast Music Festival will run. Headed up by the Department of Culutral Affairs' public programs coordinator, Brian Keigher, the festival looks to bring a world-class event to the city that will (hopefully) become a mainstay. Although no preliminary lineup has been announced, Sonar has been highly successful in Barcelona and other cities, booking some of the biggest talent in electronic music (this year includes LCD Soundsystem, Chemical Brothers and Flying Lotus). Chicago's version should hopefully bring equally talented acts, as Sonar is working with AC Entertainment, co-producers of the hugely popular Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival.

For those familiar with the festival, this is a huge push in the right direction for reviving, progressing and sustaining the electronic music scene in Chicago, a scene that has been somewhat neglected by other festivals in the city (with the exception of buzz-DJs on the Lollapalooza bill). With both this and North Coast Music Fest, we are extremely excited to have a bevy of fantastic experimental and electronic music be put on display. We’ll update you as soon as a lineup is announced!